


It Takes Two Men To Hold Each Other Up (title may change)

by TonySnark (Sherlocked729)



Series: Man of Magic, Man of Science [2]
Category: Doctor Strange (2016), Doctor Strange (Comics), Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Arguing, Bucky Barnes Needs a Hug, But Changes Eventually, Drinking, Explicit Language, Homophobic Language, M/M, Past Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Physical Abuse, Slurs, Smoking, Steve Rogers Is Not a Good Guy For A While, Violence, tony is Trying His Best
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-06
Updated: 2018-07-24
Packaged: 2019-06-06 06:06:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,599
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15188435
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sherlocked729/pseuds/TonySnark
Summary: Tony and Bucky have retreated back to Malibu, California in hopes of never facing Steve Rogers again but that proves impossible. Everyone must face their demons, open up, and rip out the worst part of themselves before it destroys their whole family.Sequel to Man of Magic, Man of Science.





	1. sanctuary

**Author's Note:**

> Apologies for deleting the first version of the sequel to Man of Magic, Man of Science but I needed to fix a few things here and there. If you don't like it, don't comment, and move on to something else. It's very simple and literally requires no extra brain work to do so. Take your hate somewhere else.
> 
> Just be a decent person, man.

**.       .     .**

 

“What the hell were you thinking, kidnapping him like that, Stark?”

Tony rubbed the bridge of his nose and leaned against the counter, feeling a headache already forming. He sighed into the phone, not even trying to cover up his frustration. It had been two months since he had left with Bucky and he had only found the courage now to return Steve Rogers’ hundredth phone call to him.

“Language,” Tony mocked, remembering when Cap had said that to him in Sokovia. He heard a frustrated growl on the other end and then cleared his throat. “I didn’t _kidnap_ him. He was free to leave any time he wanted to; I told him this!”

“Damn it, Tony…”

“No, I’m sorry, but you don’t get a say in this! You’ve been abusing him, physically and emotionally. You need to cool it with this shit, Rogers. Calling a million times isn’t going to make me want to call you back any sooner. What you’re doing is some real possessive bullshit, and it has to stop,” Tony said sternly, his jaw clenched in anger as he unleashed some of it on Steve verbally.

He never would have the courage to tell this stuff to his face. 

Steve, however, wasn’t at a loss for words or even surprised at the outburst. “Bucky’s my friend a lot longer than he’s been yours, and you have no idea what we’ve been through together. You don’t deserve him! He’s worth ten of you!”

“Yeah, you keep reminding me,” Tony ran a hand through his hair and then saw Barnes come out of the elevator almost timidly, as if he knew who Tony was talking to.

Bucky grabbed some coffee and then took a seat at the table, his back facing Stark.

“Give him back to me, Stark,” Steve growled in a tone that sent a chill up Tony’s spine. “Or else I’m going to fly to California and take him back here.”

Steve’s possession over Bucky made Tony want to scream. He brought his voice to a hushed whisper as he turned around away from Barnes.  “No, you’re not. No one will let you do that, especially myself. You won’t step foot in this goddamn place until you get your shit together. You might have grown up with the kid and fought in a war together, but I’d die to protect him, even if that means protecting him from you.”

He hung up his phone, wishing that he still had a landline phone that he could slam onto the receiver angrily. He took a deep breath and let it out before he poured himself some coffee and sat across from Barnes at the table.

“Sleep all right?”

The man half-shrugged, which was his usual answer since they had come back. He pretended to be entranced with his black coffee.

“That Steve on the phone that you were talkin’ to?”

Tony nodded, eyeing the man cautiously. “Yeah, it was.”

“What’d he want?”

Tony looked at him and gave him a shrug. “What he always wants, for you to go back there. He believes that I took you against your will. He just… can’t get it through his head why you wanted to come with.”

“Maybe I…. maybe I should go back?” It was more of a fearful suggestion than an offer.

Tony was already shaking his head halfway through the sentence before Barnes could finish it. He leaned back in his chair and took a long drink of his own coffee.

“I really don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“You gonna physically stop me if I try to leave here?”

Tony swallowed hard, the coffee burning his throat as he shook his head. “You know I wouldn’t put hands on you like he does. I just want you safe, Barnes. That’s all. I believe you’re safer here than you are over there with Rogers, but… if you want to leave, leave. I already promised everyone and you that you could come and go as you pleased.”

Bucky nodded and took this but sighed. “I ain’t gonna leave, Stark. I just wanted to see what you’d say.”

Tony smirked now at him and nodded. 

He let the kid drink his coffee in peace, only talking when he initiated the conversation and kept it light. The two men occasionally laughed, having found a comfortable peace around in each other since they had come back to Tony’s mansion.

After a few beats, Bucky’s expression turned serious, but his eyes soft.

“Thanks, Stark.”

“For what?” Tony looked at him in surprise as he drank his coffee.

The other man shrugged.

“I don’t know. Bringing me here, away from Steve. Protectin’ me, lookin’ after me, all of it. I just feel weak that I couldn’t do all that without you,” Barnes ran a hand through his already disheveled hair.

Tony felt his heart break for the man. He shook his head, quiet for a few moments in speechlessness. He cleared his throat.

“Don’t worry about it, kid. I… care about you, and no one deserves to live or have to deal with their abusers. I know what shit’s like and… I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy,” he smirked.

Barnes smirked back and nodded.

“All right,” Tony said after a couple uncomfortable minutes of vulnerability. “I’ve got to make a call. Do you want to go play video games or something?”

“Wow, that’s very… fatherly of you. Did your own dad do that you when too when he wanted to make a call to talk about you?” Bucky asked, half chuckling.

Tony sighed but he was also chuckling. “Go play, son. Daddy’s gotta call his mistress now,” he half-joked, messing up Bucky’s hair even more.

“So hilarious, Stark. I can’t wait until you’re a dad.” Bucky stood up and headed downstairs to the entertainment room, leaving Tony alone.

It had been awhile since Tony had actually talked to Stephen Strange and they had left things empty and broken between them, but Tony missed him, more than anything.

He swallowed hard and started to dial Strange’s number when he suddenly saw a fiery portal open out of the ceiling and then watched the wizard drop down out of it before it closed, a serious and angry expression on his face as he started towards Tony.

Stark, surprised, backed up quickly. When Strange saw his reaction, he stopped walking towards him but his expression never changed, his eyes filled with anger, confusion and hurt.

“Wow, very big of you to call me instead of actually talking to me face to face, Anthony.”

Tony sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

“Please, don’t call me that. I’ve told you a million times not to call –"

Stephen shook his head now, grimacing. “No, you don’t get a say in what I call you after what you did. You ran away -"

“I left –"

Stephen clenched his jaw now and shook his head in disbelief. “You RAN! You ran away because you didn’t get what you wanted!”

Tony searched his face, clenching his hands into angry fists now. “I LEFT BECAUSE I THOUGHT YOU HAD MY BACK AND INSTEAD YOU JUST PLUNGED A KNIFE INTO IT!” he suddenly yelled.

Stephen took a deep breath before he let it out. “I did have your back, until I thought harder about the implications of what I was about to do to Rogers. It wasn’t right… and it didn’t make sense to me, not in the long run.”

Tony calmed down a bit but he couldn’t shake the anger and feeling of betrayal he felt. He also felt like an idiot that he felt grateful to see Stephen again, even if they were fighting.

“What didn’t make sense about it? The fact that he wouldn’t hurt Barnes again? What you could have done would have been –"

“Immoral,” Strange finished for him. “Even if I erase the bad memories and replace them with good ones, it’s still brainwashing. If… he ever would have found out about that, Tony, it would destroy every fiber of his being and he would destroy himself. He lived in a time where brainwashing was the norm in Germany! He wouldn’t understand his friends doing it on him.”

“He’s an abuser, Strange. I’m sorry but I don’t think people who hit other people and threaten them get special treatment here!”

Strange watched Tony with almost sad eyes. “You were a weapons manufacturer and sold nukes in mass quantities to terrorist organizations and military personnel, granted, before you know what was actually going on, but you still sold them anyway. You were a womanizer of the worst kind before you became Iron Man. You weren’t a good person, were you, Tony?”

“What does that have to do with anything right now?”

Strange searched his eyes carefully. “I’m not saying that Steve Rogers should get special treatment but I am saying that people are allowed to change, and if they do, they should change because of something they believe in, and not because someone else made them change without their permission.”

Tony shook his head, sighing. “What’s your point here, Strange?”

“My point, Tony, is… that you became a better person because you believed that people shouldn’t be hurt by others, but no one told you to change who you were. You just did it because of your new beliefs. I’m not saying that Rogers deserves anything, but I believe he doesn’t deserve to be brainwashed, at the very least. If he wants to change who he is, then he will. All of us telling him what to do isn’t going to make it happen any faster and it won’t stick with him. He needs to _want_ to change,” Strange watched Tony hesitantly, waiting to see his reaction.

Tony understood what he was being told but it didn’t mean that he had to like it. He leaned against the counter now.

“Is it still brainwashing if he becomes a better person for it?”

Stephen took a step forward towards the inventor. “Yes, and I won’t do it. I’m sorry, Stark,” he thought for a moment and then searched Tony’s eyes again. “How did you like it when Wanda Maximoff brainwashed you, making you see things, things from your nightmares?”

“You know I didn’t like it at all. It’s what made me create Ultron.”

“Exactly,” Strange nodded. “You were brainwashed by someone, which made you create something that wanted to destroy everything and everyone which inevitably resulted in the breakup of Sokovia. It didn’t have a happy ending for anyone.”

Tony nodded in agreement but was quiet, rubbing his eyes as a headache started to form. “I just want to protect Barnes. That’s all I want to do. He deserves that, at least.”

“You’re right, Tony, he does deserve to feel safe and protected,” Stephen took another step closer to Stark. “And you’ve done that. You moved him here, away from Rogers. You did what you had to do but you’re going to have to face everyone eventually again. What are you going to do on your next mission with Barnes?”

“I’m going to do what I have to do, keep an eye on him, and keep Rogers away from him,” Tony said, a bit unsurely.

“That’s very ambitious, Stark,”

Tony took a shaky breath, already knowing that he wouldn’t be able to do all three of those things on a mission. He was only one person, after all. Even with Friday, it would be difficult.

“When lives are on the line, people need to work together. Missions might come up, and you need to work with Rogers, like it or not, and… sometimes, Barnes might have to be there to help all of you too.”

“So how do I protect him during a mission and complete the mission at the same time?”

Strange sighed and shrugged, shaking his head. “I don’t know, Tony. I don’t have all the answers for you, but I know you’ll find a way. I think you need to talk to the others, though. You can’t avoid them forever.”

“I’m not trying to. I’m just -"

“One person,” Strange interrupted again. “You can only do so much but isolating both of you here isn’t the answer either.”

“It’s the only answer I have right now,” Tony admitted. “I’m tired. I just… want things to be okay for five minutes without anyone yelling or getting hurt. I just want peace between everyone and not feel like I’m fighting with the same people that are helping me to fight the real bad guys. It’s… goddamn exhausting.”

“Go somewhere with Rogers, without Barnes. Talk about solutions! If you want, I’ll come too. Just… talk. You can’t just avoid him, no matter how many mistakes he’s made or how much he’s hurt Barnes. He’s not his father, he doesn’t get to claim custody of him and I believe it’s wrong how possessive he is of him, but… I also believe that even bad people can change, even if no one else believes they can.”

Tony bit his lip and searched Stephen’s face. “Were you a bad person that changed?”

Stephen nodded. “Before I became… an Avenger, I was a cocky surgeon who turned down other people who needed my skills and my help. I was a complete asshole to everyone I knew and… I paid the price for it. Karma doesn’t discriminate, even for world renowned surgeons,” Stephen lifted up his shaking hands, smirking slightly.

“I changed, for the better. Now, I’m not so cocky, and I admit my faults. I try to help others who need it and I do it as much as I possibly can, as you know. I want to help everyone because I want to redeem myself. I want to be a better person and… if you can get Rogers to admit that he wants those things as well, then you’re halfway there to helping him become a better person too.”

Tony took this in and nodded eventually, knowing that Stephen was right. He realized now just how close the two of them were, and felt a warmness as Stephen touched his hand with his own.

“Why are you always right?”

Strange chuckled, shaking his head. “I’m not always right. You’re just sometimes wrong.”

Tony rolled his eyes but wrapped his arms around the taller man, who in turn, embraced him as well. He breathed in the sweet smell of jasmine on Strange’s clothes, somehow feeling more relaxed and safe in his arms.

“I missed you.”

“I missed you too, Anthony.”


	2. dislocation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> bar date. joking. dislocation. movies.

**.      .     .**

Tony spent a few hours with Strange until he had to go fight the monsters that were wreaking havoc on an unsuspecting city and then headed down to the game room where he was surprised to see Barnes still playing video games.

Tony watched him for a while, silently, getting lost in the gameplay. He only spoke up when he saw him lose a life, Mario falling down to his death.

“I would’ve thought you would be playing Halo or Call of Duty or something along those lines. Never thought you’d pick Super Mario Bros.”

Bucky glanced back at him and raised an eyebrow. “I’ve already been a soldier twice. My tour is over.”

Tony couldn’t blame him; Bucky probably saw things Tony counted himself lucky never to have seen. He’d seen war, but never had to be the one to shoot back at the enemy, at least never without his suit.

He nodded in understanding. “Well, then you’re playing the right game,” he eyed the man carefully. “You’d been cooped up here for a while, now. Do you want to go out and eat or do something?”

The other man shrugged, his eyes still on the screen in concentration. “Is it safe for me to go out in public?”

Tony ran a hand through his hair. “Yeah, sure. You haven’t had an episode for a few months. Your nightmares have been at a minimum. I think it’d do you some good to go out and get some fresh air.”

He nodded absentmindedly. “Okay.”

Stark was about to say something else when he heard his phone ring. He didn’t bother to step out of the room when he saw Nat’s name pop up on the caller ID and answered it.

“Romanoff,” he greeted.

“Shellhead,” she replied affectionately, a smile in her tone.

“What do I owe this pleasure?”

“Is it, a pleasure? After how we left things before you left?”

Tony sighed to himself. “Yes, because… someone made me see some sense. I was wrong and I miss hearing your voice.”

“You’re the one who left, Stark,” Natasha’s voice neutral.

“I was,” he admitted. “What’s going on?”

“I’m in town and I’d like to hang out with you. That possible?”

Tony smiled now. “Yeah, okay if I bring the kid?”

Bucky paused his game and glanced over at Tony now in curiosity.

“Sure.  I have to finish up some business first but we can meet up later at the bar down the road from you. Does that work for you guys?”

Tony glanced at Bucky.

“Yeah, it works. See you around seven?”

“Perfect. I’ll be done with things by then. See you boys soon.”

Tony hung up and smirked.

“Nat wants to hang out?” Bucky asked with uncertainty.

Tony nodded, searching his eyes for his comfort level. “That’s right, Terminator. Hope that’s okay that I said we would.”

Bucky nodded but looked unsure. He ran his fingers through his dark hair before he cleared his throat. “Do you think… she’ll be mad at me for leaving Steve high and dry?”

“Nat?” Tony shook his head, looking reassuringly at the other man. “Don’t sweat it, kid. She knows that he’s out of control. We might’ve clashed back in New York but she doesn’t hold grudges. She’s a good egg.”

He nodded and then chewed on his bottom lip. “Is she… going to stay here with us?”

He searched Bucky’s eyes, smirking when he figured out why Bucky was looking so shy about this. “Do you want her to?”

He chuckled and shrugged. “She can stay if she wants. It’s your place. It’s your decision.”

Tony walked over to him.

“That doesn’t answer my question, Barnes. Maybe you have a little crush, yes?” Tony smiled, half-teasingly.

Bucky threw a pillow at him, laughing. “Get the hell outta here, Stark!”

Tony caught the pillow easily, now also laughing. He sat down beside Bucky and joined in his game. Questions started to fill his head soon as he played and then had to pause the game between them to satisfy his own curiosity.

“What was it like, training in the Red Room with her?”

Bucky shrugged, standing up to go in the small kitchen in the next room to grab a beer. He easily took the cap off and looked at Stark. “I don’t know. I don’t really remember training her in there. That wasn’t me; that was the Winter Soldier.”

Tony nodded in understanding, not wanting to make him uncomfortable or trigger an episode. “Yeah, of course. I get that. I didn’t think. I was just wondering.”

Bucky took a long pull of the beer and sat back down beside Tony. “No problem. No harm, no foul.”

“Good. So what do you want to do until it’s time to meet up with her?”

“Aren’t we already doing something?” Bucky asked, confused as he held up his wireless controller.

Tony chuckled. “Well, yeah, but… I think we should train a bit, since we’re no longer training with the others anymore. We don’t want to get too rusty if we get called into a mission.”

Bucky groaned playfully.

“Do we have to?”

“We don’t _have_ to, but we _should_!”

“All right, but I’m bringing my beer.” He turned the system off and stood up before he grabbed his beer and led them towards the training area.

“Oh yeah, great idea, kid. That’ll hydrate you for sure. Also, who has a beer at 10am?”

Bucky shrugged. “You do sometimes.”

Tony sighed, following him to the area before he tugged his shirt off. “Do as I say, not as I do. That’s always been my motto. Anyway, I’m older than you so you should do as I say anyway,” Tony teased.

Bucky set his beer down on a shelf and did the same with his own shirt.

“You’re mistaken, Stark. I’m older than _you._ ”

“In your past life. Sorry, doesn’t count. I’m talking about this life that we’re in now. Not WWII era.” He put two clean towels in each corner of their rings respectively and started to side-step him.

Bucky started to bob and weave now, mimicking Tony’s stances. “I’m older than you in every life, Stark. The only difference between us is that you’ll be in a wheelchair after you break your hip.”

Tony chuckled, seeing Bucky smirk. He shook his head and then jabbed towards Bucky’s head but the other man quickly moved out of the way. Of course he did.

“Keep talking like that and I’ll break your hip, old man,” Tony joked.

Bucky laughed and expertly took out Tony’s legs, making him fall on his back but then taking a couple steps back to give him time to get up again.

Tony groaned as he got up again. He rolled and got behind Bucky, wrapping an arm around his neck from behind but didn’t apply any pressure.

Bucky moved out of the choke hold, starting to perspire from the activity. He sniffed before he did a duck and roll behind Tony, pulling him backwards to the ground and putting his knees on the inventor’s chest.

Stark grabbed his legs and quickly dragged them out from underneath him before pushing Bucky onto his stomach, huffing and puffing.

Bucky stood up and ran his hands through his hair, looking slightly uncomfortable now. He put his hand up. “Time out…”

Tony nodded respectfully and walked over to the mini kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water before walking back over.

“You okay? Do you want to stop?”

Barnes shook his head before he took a swig of his beer, looking up at Tony. “Are we doin’ this for our next mission or are you trainin’ me to protect myself against Steve?”

Tony set down his water and looked over at him, shrugging. “Both. Yeah, both sounds good. Does it matter?”

Bucky shook his head. “Guess not. But… I also don’t want to kill Steve.”

“By order of S.H.I.E.L.D, you’re not allowed to kill any of the Avengers. You’d be a criminal again. No one’s saying you have to kill Cap, though. A part of me even thinks that might be impossible to do, anyway, but I digress.”

Bucky moved back over to Tony before he nodded. “What if… I can’t control it, though? Hydra ingrained it in me to kill people without a second thought. What if I kill Steve by accident?”

Tony mulled this over in his head. There would be trouble for sure, all around. He ran a hand through his sweat-matted hair as he began to side-step him again.

“I’d do everything in my power to stop that from happening. We’ll figure that out when we cross that bridge,” Tony finally decided.

Bucky put his arms out defensively, quickly taking Tony back down again, pinning is shoulders to the floor mat before backing away again.

The other man sniffed as he got up, wiping sweat off of his forehead with the towel quickly before he threw it back down. He went to tackle Bucky but the super soldier barely even moved and in a single move,  grabbed Tony’s arm and threw him down on the mat a lot harder than he had intended, causing a loud _snap!_ to echo in the training room.

Tony let out a yelp of pain and rolled over quickly, holding his arm. “Shit!”

Bucky blinked, looking on in shock, his eyes full of panic now. “Fuck… fuck, I’m… I’m s-so sorry, Stark…”

Tony grimaced in pain as he looked up at him, seeing the genuine fear on his face. He groaned as he forced himself to sit up, still holding his arm close to him. “I-It’s okay… it’s f-fine. You just dislocated it, Barnes.”

Bucky ran distressed fingers through his hair, watching him. “W-What do I do? Should I call someone? Take you to a-a hospital?”

This would be hard to explain. Everyone in the world knew Bucky’s sordid history, who he was. Someone would call S.H.I.E.L.D. and have Bucky locked up for being dangerous. Tony knew he didn’t want that to happen. This had been his idea, after all.

“No… no,” Tony swallowed hard. “I-I need your help, though. You’re strong enough; I need you t-to… to pop my shoulder back into p-place. All right, kid?”

Bucky looked unsure about this but he nodded, panic all over his face. “Y-Yeah, all right. Okay… I’m… I’m so sorry,” he apologized again, his voice shaking.

Tony shook his head dismissively before he moved onto his knees so Bucky could get a good grip and his shoulder joint would go back into place relatively easily.

“Don’t worry… don’t worry a-about it. Just… focus now, okay? Grab my hand,” Tony held out his now shaking hand and watched as Bucky gripped it in the opposite way of Tony’s. “N-Now… pull towards you as hard as you can without ripping my arm completely off.”

Bucky looked hesitant now and shook his head. “I-I know how to do this, but… I don’t think I should. M-Maybe we should wait until later when we meet up with Nat? S-She’d be better with this type of thing.”

Tony shook his head. “N-No, I’m sorry… but we can’t wait. It feels… it feels like there’s broken glass in my shoulder right now, and I need you to do this. O-Okay? You got this, Barnes. Just trust me, okay?”

Bucky swallowed hard and watched Tony fearfully but then Tony saw him put on a brave face and grip his hand tightly.

“All right. I’ll count to three?”

Tony nodded shakily. “Y-Yeah, sure.”

“Okay,” Bucky took a deep breath. “One… Two…”

_POP!_

Tony let out a loud groan of pain when Bucky suddenly jerked his arm and pulled back, popping Tony’s shoulder back into place again.

The inventor laid down on his back and held his arm close to him. He took another shaky breath. “Good job.”

Bucky seemed to relax now and he nodded. “I… I remember someone doing that for me when they trained me. A lot. Do you need anything else?”

Tony sat up before he stood again. “Maybe some painkillers from the bedroom medicine cabinet? Can you get it for me or… are you still shaken up?”

“No,” Bucky replied instantly. “I can get it.”

Tony wiped himself down before he put his shirt back on. “Well that’s enough training for today,” he chuckled weakly. “Let’s take it down a notch and watch some movies until it’s time to head down to the bar.”

Bucky nodded, smirking weakly. “I’ll go get you the painkillers.”

Tony gave him a nod of thanks and headed towards the entertainment room. He grabbed a thin bedsheet from the linen closet in his room on the way there and made a makeshift sling to rest his arm in. He breathed a sigh of relief.

It still hurt, but at least now it wouldn’t hurt as bad. He put in The Thing before collapsing on the deep couch. Bucky came in a few minutes later, carrying Tony’s half-empty bottle of water and two painkillers before handing it all to him, his eyes resting on the sling and filling with guilt again.

Tony watched him as he swallowed the pills and smirked. “Don’t sweat it, Barnes. Really. I’m an old man, remember? Sit, let’s watch the movie. I picked this one, but you can pick the next one, okay?”

Bucky seemed to relax slightly now and nodded. “Y-Yeah, sure.”

He sat beside Tony and then chuckled when the title came on the screen. “A horror movie? Really?”

“Yeah, really. Something you should know about me; I love horror movies. So, secret out, shut up, let’s watch.”

Bucky looked more at ease as he chuckled again and sighed. As the movie got more and more intense, Tony stole a glance over at Barnes and smiled to himself when he saw the look of anticipation on his face.

They made a good team.


	3. PDA

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> shyness, conversations, confrontations, beer, and love.

**.       .      .**

  
“Come on, kid. Will you please stop looking so nervous? You’re walking in here looking like you’re going to shoot the place up. Barnes, it’s okay. You’re no longer a wanted man. Just relax.”

Bucky nodded but still looked on edge, not used to being in public places where he was a wanted man. He tried to hide his metallic arm behind his back as they passed through the Friday crowd of people who were buying drinks with this week’s paycheck.

Tony felt anxious just glancing back at Bucky to see his anxiety. He relaxed a bit when he saw a familiar mop of short red hair sitting on a bar stool.

Tony smirked to himself as he pointed towards her to Bucky before he sat on one side of her, slinking into the seat and putting down his credit card. “Open a tab up, their drinks are on me.”

“Sure thing, Stark,” The bartender nodded casually, thankfully unfazed at the three Avengers getting drinks in his bar.

“Excuse me, but I really don’t mind paying or my own drinks, Mr. Billionaire,” Nat remarked with a smirk on her own face.

Bucky sat a bit unsurely on the other side of her but ordered a beer when the bartender came over to him before he looked around, trying to look interested in the architecture of the bar.

“I know. I just… wanted to make it up to you, since we parted ways last. I just wanted to be nice. That’s all.”

Natasha finally turned to look up at him and her smirk fell when she saw his arm in a sling. She straightened up and looked at him in concern. “Who did you piss off this time, Stark?”

Tony chuckled and shook his head.

“I was training… with Barnes, and… I underestimated him.”

She was scrambling in her purse now. “I could have sworn I had some nice painkillers in here from the last time I needed stitches…”

“No, it’s fine. Anyway, I don’t think Oxy and alcohol mix too well,” Tony winked at her after she had stopped looking and went back to her drink. He ordered a beer and glanced over to see Nat saying hello to Barnes who smiled shyly and nodded warmly.

He smiled to himself. Barnes looked almost happy as he talked to Natasha.

Tony sipped his beer, letting the two of them talk, probably about Steve. He felt the vibration in his pants pocket where his phone was and pulled out to see Strange texted him.

_“Where are you? We should hang out.”_

Tony took another drink of his beer and texted back:

_At the bar down the street from me. Come hang out with us. It’s just the kid and Nat. We can hang out though too._

He felt oddly nervous as he waited for a reply, watching the three dots moving as Strange typed.  Tony glanced up to see that Bucky had relaxed and was talking enthusiastically now, Natasha smiling brightly as she listened and drank.

He smiled again to himself and then saw that Strange had replied.

_“Be right there. See you soon. Xo”_

Tony put his phone away and sipped his drink as he looked on at Bucky and Natasha. When he saw Stephen enter, looking oddly normal in a t-shirt and jeans, he grabbed his beer and finished it before he walked over to him.

“Hey! You made it. Glad you found it, Strange.”

Stephen smiled but leaned in to talk to Tony over the loud music and people talking. “Can we go outside for a few?”

Tony nodded and grabbed his hand before leading him back outside in the chilly air. He looked around and then watched as Stephen took out a pack of cigarettes, eyeing them unsurely.

“Tough day at the office?”

Strange nodded and then rubbed his eyes before he took a drag and sighed, exhaling the smoke.

Tony shuffled his feet. “Didn’t know you smoked.”

“I can hide it pretty well. I didn’t… really want you to know that I have vices too. I wanted you to think I was perfect,” he smirked weakly, shrugging.

Tony chuckled and ran a hand through his hair.

“You know I already think you are. So… do you want to talk about it? Whatever happened, at work?”

Stephen took another drag off his cigarette, letting the smoke into his lungs before he exhaled, leaning against the wall of the bar building. He was quiet for a long while before he put his cigarette out on the ground and finally spoke.

“It happened in Calcutta. There were these… creatures that could also manipulate time and… they froze it, set fires everywhere, and… by the time I could get control of time again, and try to fix everything, they had burned down a children’s hospital and then they did something so… so I couldn’t reverse it. We fought and I managed to vanquish them but the damage was already done. All the children, Anthony… all of them turned to ashes in less than a minute.”

Tony watched Stephen, feeling anxious seeing his Doctor in such a state that he hadn’t seen him in before. He didn’t know what to even say. He swallowed hard and searched the other man’s face.

“I’m… I’m sorry, Strange. That’s really… really fucking bad.”

“Yeah,” Stephen sighed heavily and he suddenly let out a yell of frustration and started to punch and kick the building wildly. “FUCK!”

Tony was surprised by his behavior and took a cautious step away from him, watching him before he saw a glance of red on his hands and took a quick step forward towards him. He grabbed Stephen’s shoulders and gently cupped his face even though the other man was a good few inches taller than himself.

Once he was closer to him, he could see tears on Strange’s face.

“Hey, hey. Come here. I know it sucks. I’ve been there before trying to help other people and sometimes, there is no good outcome. Sometimes the best you can do is kill the enemy so he can’t hurt anyone else, and yeah, that’s still a pretty shitty outcome but you did what you could, right?”

Stephen was breathing hard from pounding on the wall but he shook his head. “I-It wasn’t enough! It wasn’t… thousands of children still died!”

Tony felt his heart break as he heard the other man’s voice crack. He wasn’t used to being on the other end of a situation like this; usually it was him having the breakdown and someone else trying to comfort and calm him.

“Sometimes… there’s nothing you can do. All you can do is your best, and… sometimes that just has to be good enough. Sometimes, the good guys don’t always come out on top,” Tony explained in a soft voice. “Sometimes the bad guys win.”

Strange nodded and roughly wiped away his tears on his cheeks before clearing his throat. He looked at Tony with pained eyes.

“Those children will never see their friends or play with each other… or fall in love and have a family. Those children are just… gone.”

Tony felt his chest ache and he nodded, gently caressing Stephen’s cheeks. “Those children are gone, yeah, but… there are still billions of other children that can still be saved. Doing what we do, it’s not a lost cause, although, I know it can feel like it sometimes.”

“I’m not used to being on the losing end of things. H-How do you… do this? Accept losing on missions?”

Tony gently kissed his lips before pulling away and searched his eyes.

“I don’t like losing on missions either, but… if I thought about every single person who didn’t make it out alive, I’d… probably kill myself. I can’t let myself go to that dark place. Can’t be distracted on a mission,” Tony said matter-of-factly. “We just have to try the best we can, get everyone out in time, and accept the consequences of our actions at the end of the day. It fucking sucks losing but it happens, and it’s going to keep happening, and sometimes, we can’t stop it from happening. We just have to keep going on, keep saving the ones we can save and looking out for each other. That has to be good enough.”

Stephen nodded again, taking all his in. He let out a weak chuckle now as he pulled himself together.

“I’m supposed to be the one telling you things like this.”

Tony shrugged, smirking. “I’m sure you’ll have plenty of time in the future to do that. Come on, man. Let’s go back inside. I’ll buy you a few drinks.”

Stephen nodded and led Tony inside the busy bar. They both looked around for Bucky and Natasha who were no longer at the bar but a table and once both men saw them, they made a beeline towards the table before sitting down.

Tony eyed the two beers across from Natasha and Bucky. “These for us?”

Nat nodded and sipped he cranberry vodka. “Yeah, sit down, Shell head. Hey, Strange.”

Stephen sat down first and nodded towards Natasha. “Hello there. Been awhile since we talked last. Are we okay?”

Tony glanced at Bucky who was looking much more comfortable now.

“Yeah, of course,” she smiled at Strange.

They made comfortable and even joyful conversation for a couple hours before a couple young guys made their way over to their table, obviously drunk. Tony stiffened upon seeing the smirk on the guy’s face.

“Can we help you, boys?” Natasha asked in her nonchalant cautious voice.

“Can you explain why we saw Iron Man being a total fag out on the street? I though he was a womanizer!” The other man laughed now, impressed by the other people at the table.

Natasha and Bucky both looked over at Tony and Strange and Tony dared to look up at her, afraid to see their expressions. Bucky looked unsurprised, since he knew about Tony and Stephen already, and Natasha looked like she always did.

The inventor still wanted to sink through the floor into oblivion as he felt his cheeks heat up.

Natasha stood up and finished her drink before she looked at the boys. “First of all, it’s none of your goddamn business who kisses who, or who fucks you. Second of all, you boys look a little young to be in a bar. Does your mother know that you’re out?”

The boys stiffened and took a step towards Natasha. When they did this, Bucky protectively stood up as well.

“You fucking bitch! I don’t care how hot you are!”

The one boy’s hand came up but Stephen stood up and grabbed the boy before pinning him against the wall with one hand while the other opened up a dimensional portal.

Tony stood up quickly now, his eyes wide. “Whoa, wait. Where are you taking him?”

“Ooookay enough of you now. Goodbye!”

Stephen didn’t answer him as he shoved the boy through the fiery ring and closed it quickly. Natasha and Bucky both looked at him with unsure eyes and then noticed everyone else was looking at them too.

Of course they were; Strange had opened up a magical ring portal and threw a man through it. He turned his attention to the second boy who looked on in shock. “Do you want to be next?”

“N-No…” He quickly left the bar.

“Where did you leave that kid?” Natasha asked with concern. “You know that you can’t just throw random people into other dimensions here, right?”

Strange sighed and rolled his eyes before he quickly drank his beer. “Don’t worry about him. He’s just back at his house, although, I feel like I should have left him on an alien planet instead.”

Everyone seemed to visibly relax now but Tony could see that Bucky still didn’t like what had just happened. He couldn’t deny that he also felt a bit shaken. “I think we’ve outstayed our welcome. Let’s drink up and close out. We can head back to my place for the night.”

No one seemed to argue with that. Maybe they could see how uncomfortable Tony was. After Tony had grabbed his credit card and left a hefty tip, the group of friends left the bar and started back towards the mansion in Tony’s car.

“You okay, Stark?” Natasha asked from the back seat next to Bucky.

Tony ran through a red light, his mind half concentrating on driving as the other half rewound itself and played the scene in his head again. “Yeah, grand. Why do you ask?”

“Probably because you’re driving fifteen over the speed limit. Pull over and let someone else drive, Stark,” Nat ordered.

Tony had only had two but he couldn’t deny his mind was somewhere else. He sighed and pulled over to the side of the road and unbuckled his seatbelt. “Any volunteers that actually know how to drive?”

Bucky smirked weakly in the backseat, knowing that that was a playful jab at himself.

“I’ve only had one drink. Let me drive.” Strange unbuckled his seatbelt and got out of the car and started walking to Tony’s side.

“Oh yeah, great. Didn’t you once drive off a ravine?” Tony replied weakly, trying to joke but knowing it sounded crasser than he had meant for it too.

Stephen stopped Tony as he started to walk over to the passenger side of the car and pulled him into a firm hug before he placed his lips near the latter man’s ear.

“Hey,” Tony heard him whisper. “Forget about them, those guys at the bar. They’re idiots. Just because we were kissing doesn’t make you a lesser person for… being this way.”

“I know,” Tony replied, looking down.

“I’m serious, Tony. Being bisexual isn’t a horrible thing, and nothing to be ashamed of. Don’t let those assholes get you down or make you believe it is, okay? I love you, you love me and nothing else matters.”

Tony nodded now, hating how Stephen always knew exactly what was bothering him. He took a breath. “Okay. All right.”

Stephen kissed Tony’s forehead softly and lingered there before he finally let go of him and hopped in the driver’s seat. Tony walked to the passenger seat and made himself comfortable, soon feeling Nat’s hand on his shoulder.

“You okay, Stark?” She asked in a gentle voice.

“Always,” Tony lied. “I thought you didn’t need a man’s help. Back at the bar. You didn’t break either of their necks, but you could’ve. You could’ve at least broken that one asshole’s wrist.” Tony was only half-serious about the neck part.

Natasha chuckled and yawned tiredly, leaning against Bucky’s shoulder. “Another time, maybe. Anyway, we’re not allowed to hurt civilians. I’d be in trouble with the boss.”

Tony chuckled now. “I’m sure Fury would make an exception in your case.”

“Stephen Strange, you’re my hero!” Natasha spoke in a fake excited tone.

Stephen laughed now and shook his head as he parked in Tony’s driveaway. “No autographs, please.”

Bucky now laughed and the tension eased between them. Tony got out and led them inside before making sure everyone was comfortable and headed towards his room with Stephen, shutting the door behind the other man as he took off his shirt and jeans and left his boxers on before he climbed into bed.

Stephen did the same and wrapped an arm around Tony, almost protectively.

“Are you really okay? Do you want to talk about what happened back there?”

Tony breathed the other man in and relaxed significantly, wrapping the blankets around them. “I just… don’t know what I expected would happen. I guess I thought people would be more accepting. Times are different now, right? This isn’t the 80s anymore.”

Stephen pressed a kiss to Tony’s dark hair and held him close.

“I’d like to think people are more accepting of gay and bisexual relationships nowadays, more so than they were in the 1980s. Sometimes people surprise you, though. I’m sorry he called you that.”

Tony took a deep breath and shook his head. “That’s the first time I think I ever heard anyone call me that before. I’m just glad you were there. I would’ve probably destroyed that guy.”

“I think you would have destroyed him too, which is why I sent him back home. Do you… just want to stop doing PDA’s between us? You wouldn’t be called that anymore.”

Tony bit his lip before he looked up at Strange. “Do you….?”

Stephen searched his face. “No, but… it’s totally your choice. I’m in this with you, whatever you want to do, Stark. It’s your decision and I’m okay with whatever.”

“Jesus, why do you have to be so easygoing?”

Stephen laughed and kissed him again before he closed his eyes. “Just answer the question, Tony.”

“No, I don’t want to stop kissing you in public.”

Stephen smiled. “Good.”

Tony closed his eyes before curling up against him. “I love you.”

“I love you too, Anthony.”


End file.
